Gardiner MacDougall to coach Canada’s U-18 Men’s World Championship team

Hockey Canada has announced that Gardiner MacDougall has been named the head coach of Team Canada’s U-18 World Championship team. Assistant coaches are Travis Crickard, Bruce Richardson and Ryan Smith.

MacDougall coached the University of New Brunswick Reds to an astonishing 30-0-0 record and went on to sweep their way through the playoffs and then defeated the Université du Québec a Trois-Rivières Patriotes to clinch the 2024 University Cup for a second consecutive season.

MacDougall is the most winning coach in Canadian men’s university hockey history after notching his 600th career win during the 2023-24 campaign. He took over the head coaching job with the Reds in the 2000-01 season and since then has won nine national titles, tying him with former University of Toronto coach Tom Watt for the most in Canadian university hockey history.

The Bedeque, Prince Edward Island product also had a stint with the Saint John Sea Dogs in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) during the 2021-22 season when Saint John hosted the 2022 Memorial Cup. MacDougall was named interim coach on May 22nd, just days before the opening game of the Memorial Cup. He led the Sea Dogs to a Memorial Cup Championship. MacDougall became the first Canadian Hockey League coach in history to win a USPORTS championship and Memorial Cup.

Last year’s U-18 Canada squad was coached by Jeff Truitt and was led by 2024 top prospect Macklin Celebrini, Nashville Predators prospect Matthew Wood, Colorado Avalanche prospect Cal Ritchie and more. Canada captured a bronze medal after defeating Slovakia 4-3.

This year’s tournament is hosted in Espoo and Vantaa, Finland and runs from April 25 to May 5. Canada last won gold in 2020-21 when the team was led by NHLers Connor Bedard, Dylan Guenther, Logan Stankoven, Mason McTavish, Olen Zellweger and more.